System for administering a multiplicity of namespaces containing state information and services

Abstract

The Namespace Management System comprises a run-time configurable state information management system that evaluates a request within a semantic domain defined by the state information at a given moment in time. The Namespace Management System comprises a Namespace Management application, executing on a computer system that is connected to the Internet or other Autonomous System. The Namespace Management System is programmatically and dynamically configurable to take part in and administer a multiplicity of namespaces, each of which contains listings, data, and services or other state information required to satisfy a request and/or interact with callable services. A multiplicity of Namespace Management Systems can register services, provide services, discover services, communicate with services, and participate in one or more dynamic network namespaces, with each Namespace Management System having at least one associated dynamic network namespace listing. At run-time, a Namespace Management System can register a subscriber's present point of presence to associate with its dynamic network namespace listing. The Namespace Management System provides dynamic point of presence registration for namespace listings and through a scheme handler service to resolve a namespace listing reference, which is given as a Uniform Resource Identifier, to the present point of presence for the namespace listing. This process enables the Namespace Management System to provide web services independent of the physical location of the subscriber.

1 . A namespace management system, executing on a computing device which is connected to a communication medium, comprising: 
 communication means for sending and receiving communications over said communication medium; and    namespace management means operational in said computing device, comprising: 
 bootstrap means for initializing a namespace administered by the namespace management means,  
 service registration means for registering services into said namespace administered by the namespace management means,  
 parser means, responsive to a configuration document received by said communication means, including data that describes a request to be interpreted by the namespace management means, for parsing and evaluating said received configuration document, and  
 service means, responsive to said parser means outputting a service request received in said configuration document, for calling a service identified in said service request and registered in said namespace by said service registration means.  
   
   
   
       2 . The namespace management system of  claim 1  wherein said communication means comprises: 
 protocol means for implementing at least one communication protocol for sending and receiving communications over said communication medium.    
   
   
       3 . The namespace management system of  claim 1  further comprising: 
 a dynamically loadable library containing at least one initialization function that is callable; and    wherein said namespace management means further comprises: 
 link means, responsive to said service request received in said configuration document calling said initialization function identified in said service request, where the called initialization function is absent from said namespace and loaded in said dynamically loadable library, for loading said initialization function from said at least one dynamically loadable library into said namespace.  
   
   
   
       4 . The namespace management system of  claim 1  further comprising: 
 at least one dynamically loadable library which contains at least one executable module that implements a service; and    wherein said namespace management means further comprises: 
 link means, responsive to said service request received in said configuration document calling a service identified in said service request, where the called service is absent from said namespace and loaded in said at least one dynamically loadable library, for loading said at least one module from said at least one dynamically loadable library into said namespace.  
   
   
   
       5 . The namespace management system of  claim 1  wherein said namespace management means further comprises: 
 subscription means, responsive to receiving a subscription request communicated by a first process executing on a first computing device, for validating the received subscription request and in response thereto registering a subscriber listing in said namespace; and    configuration means, responsive to validation of said subscription request, for transmitting a configuration document containing a registration request as the response to the subscription request wherein the configuration document includes a representation of the registered subscriber listing.    
   
   
       6 . The namespace management system of  claim 5  wherein said namespace management means further comprises: 
 registration means, responsive to receiving a registration request including a representation of a subscriber listing, for registering the current point of presence to associate with the subscriber listing.    
   
   
       7 . The namespace management system of  claim 6  wherein said namespace management means further comprises: 
 scheme handler means for resolving a namespace listing reference, which is given as a Uniform Resource Identifier, to the present point of presence for the namespace listing.    
   
   
       8 . A method of operating a namespace management system, executing on a computing device which is connected to a communication medium, comprising: 
 sending and receiving communications over said communication medium; and    managing a namespace which is operational in said computing device, comprising: 
 initializing a namespace administered by the namespace management means;  
 registering services into said namespace administered by the namespace management means;  
 parsing, in response to a configuration document received by said communication means, including data that describes a request to be interpreted by the namespace management means, and evaluating said received configuration document; and  
 calling, in response to said parser means outputting a service request received in said configuration document, a service identified in said service request and registered in said namespace by said service registration step.  
   
   
   
       9 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 8  wherein said step of sending and receiving comprises: 
 implementing at least one communication protocol for sending and receiving communications over said communication medium.    
   
   
       10 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 8  further comprising: 
 dynamically loading a library containing at least one initialization function that is callable; and    wherein said step of managing a namespace further comprises: 
 loading, in response to said service request received in said configuration document calling said initialization function identified in said service request, where the called initialization function is absent from said namespace and loaded in said dynamically loadable library, said initialization function from said at least one dynamically loadable library into said namespace.  
   
   
   
       11 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 8  further comprising: 
 loading at least one dynamically loadable library which contains at least one executable module that implements a service; and    wherein said step of managing a namespace further comprises: 
 loading, in response to said service request received in said configuration document calling a service identified in said service request, where the called service is absent from said namespace and loaded in said at least one dynamically loadable library, said at least one module from said at least one-dynamically loadable library into said namespace.  
   
   
   
       12 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 8  wherein said step of managing a namespace further comprises: 
 validating, in response to receiving a subscription request communicated by a first process executing on a first computing device, the received subscription request and in response thereto registering a subscriber listing in said namespace; and    transmitting, in response to validation of said subscription request, a configuration document containing a registration request as the response to the subscription request wherein the configuration document includes a representation of the registered subscriber listing.    
   
   
       13 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 12  wherein said step of managing a namespace further comprises: 
 registering, in response to receiving a registration request including a representation of a subscriber listing, the current point of presence to associate with the subscriber listing.    
   
   
       14 . The method of operating a namespace management system of  claim 12  wherein said step of managing a namespace further comprises: 
 resolving a namespace listing reference, which is given as a Uniform Resource Identifier, to the present point of presence for the namespace listing.    
   
   
       15 . A method of operating a namespace management system comprising: 
 executing a first process with protocol services for sending and receiving communications;    allocating in said first process and initializing memory for a service directory;    registering a service registration listing in said service directory, said listing containing information representative of a registration service for registering additional services;    parsing in said first process a configuration document containing service request statements expressed in a language format that can be interpreted by said first process, wherein a service request statement is bound to said listing and said service registration service is called to evaluate the request;    wherein said request includes information representative of a dynamic load library module that was not linked with the executable code corresponding to the first process and in response thereto the first process loads the dynamic load library into the address space of the first process; and    resolving a reference to an initialization function in said address space;    calling the initialization function and in response thereto registering a multiplicity of listings in the service directory representative of additional protocol services that can subsequently be called.    
   
   
       16 . A method of operating a namespace management system comprising: 
 executing a first process with protocol services for sending and receiving communications;    allocating in said first process and initializing memory for a service directory;    registering a service registration listing in said service directory, said listing containing information representative of a registration service for registering additional services;    parsing in said first process a configuration document containing service request statements expressed in a language format that can be interpreted by said first process, wherein a service request statement is bound to said listing and said service registration service is called to evaluate the request;    wherein said request includes information representative of a dynamic load library module that was not linked with the executable code corresponding to the first process and in response thereto the first process loads the dynamic load library into the address space of the first process; and    resolving a reference to an initialization function in said address space;    calling the initialization function and in response thereto registering a multiplicity of listings in the service directory representative of additional protocol services that subsequently can be called.